The diagram illustrates the process of recycling used glass bottels and turning them into new products
Overall, the process consists of seven main stages, beginning with the collection of bottles and ending with the production of new containers ready for reuse. From the second stage, the procedure becomes more technical and involves sorting, melting and shaping.
Firstly, used bottles of different colours are collected from the public and transported to a processing plant. There they are classified, and any metal or plastic caps are removed before the bottles are broken into smaller pieces.
Next, the broken glass is mixed with raw materials and heated in a furnace at around 1200°. After melting the mixture is shaped into new bottles through specialised equipment. Finally, the finished bottles are delivered to a factory for reuse or distribution.
